Family Self-Sufficiency Program
Your Bridge to a Brighter Future
The Family Self-Sufficiency
program works with support agencies throughout
can benefit you and your family. The Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) program
is a team effort involving your family, the FSS Coordinator, and the job training,
educational and social service agencies who will lend you a hand along your
journey towards a more productive and fulfilling life.
What is the Family Self-Sufficiency Program?
Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS) is an initiative enacted by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as a part of the National Affordable Housing Act of 1990. The program assists Housing Choice Voucher families achieve economic independence. The FSS program links participants with the education, job training, counseling, and other services necessary for them to become employed and to earn self-sufficient wages so they no longer need to rely on governmental financial assistance.
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You may want to think of the FSS program as a bridge that will help your family overcome obstacles you encounter in your journey towards self-sufficiency. First your family will develop a blueprint for its bridge with the help of the FSS Coordinator. This blueprint is called an Individual Training and Service Plan (ITSP) and outlines the steps your family will take to achieve the earning power needed to be self-supporting. Other agencies who work with the FSS families, such as schools, social service agencies, and job training programs, act as the supports that will make your bridge strong enough to stand against the challenges you will face. The FSS Coordinator solidly bolts your supports together by helping you find and connect all the many parts of your family’s bridge to self-sufficiency.
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The final and most important part of the Family Self-Sufficiency program is YOU! You and your family must have the desire and determination to attack obstacles in your path and cross your bridge to the brighter future that is waiting on the road to self-sufficiency.
How Can You Benefit from FSS?
The FSS program allows participants to take advantage of schooling, training, and to gain work experience, while receiving housing assistance.The FSS Coordinator works with each family to develop a plan to learn the skills that will lead to increased earning power.The FSS Coordinator helps families access the training and education, counseling, and job opportunities they need to accomplish their goals.
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In addition to this assistance, the
Housing Authority of the
What Do You Have to Do?
Attending the FSS Orientation is the first step towards participation in the program. Secondly, interested families must complete and turn in a Tenant Profile to the FSS Coordinator.The third step is for the family to meet with the FSS Coordinator to determine what the family will need to increase its earning power and become self-supporting. The FSS Coordinator may ask the family members to complete assignments to help clarify the family’s needs.The family may be asked to complete a job assessment and/or obtain a credit report prior to admission to the program.These assignments and assessments will help the FSS Coordinator and the family tailor a plan for the family’s specific situation.
Finally, if accepted into the program, the Head of Household must
sign a five-year FSS Contract of Participation and design an Individual
Training and Service Plan (ITSP) that outlines the steps needed for the family
to become self-supporting. The head of household is the only person who must
have an ITSP, but other family members are welcomed to take advantage of the services
provided by the FSS Coordinator to develop an ITSP. All family members with and
ITSP must stay in contact with the FSS Coordinator throughout the five years of
the Contract of Participation and notify the FSS Coordinator before moving, quitting
a job, or if there are any changes in family status or income. Of course, FSS
families must follow all Housing Choice Voucher regulations and comply with their
lease terms. Families who do not fulfill their Family Obligations in the Housing
Choice Voucher Program may be terminated from the FSS program.
How Do You Get Your Escrow Money?
There are two ways to graduate successfully from the FSS program. To receive the funds in the escrow account, the family must do one of the following by the end of the five-year FSS contract:
Graduation Method #1
The family
completes all goals set in the Individual Training and Service Plan (ITSP). Family members
do not receive any cash aid (such as TANF or General Assistance) during the last
twelve months of the FSS contract.
The Head of
Household is suitably employed. Graduation Method #2
The family's
income increases to the point that the family is no longer eligible for housing
assistance. Family members
do not receive any cash aid (such as TANF and General Assistance) at the time
of graduation. The Head of
Household is suitably employed.
How Can I Learn More About the FSS Program?
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You can call the FSS Coordinator at 895-4474 anytime to get more information regarding the FSS program.
Start Building a Bridge
To a Brighter Future
For You and Your Family
Contact Your FSS Coordinator Today!